Photographic mounting press



J. P. ENGSTROM 2,085,088 PHOTOGRAPHIC MOUNTING PRESS June 29, 1937.

Filed Dec. 26, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet l lllll Joseph P Engsh'om J. P.ENGSTROM PHOTOGRAPHIC MOUNTING PRESS Jane 29, 1937.

Filed Dec. 26, 1934 2 SheetsSheet- 2 5 Joseph 1. Engsh om Patented June29, 1937 UNETED STATES PTENT QFFIQE 3 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in presses particularly, though notexclusively, for use in mounting photographic prints on backingstherefor.

An object of the invention is to provide a simple, durable and readilyoperable press of the present character, having a platen adapted to restupon and apply pressure by gravity to a pile of mounted prints andhaving means for lifting the platen from and returning it to the pile topermit the successive addition of prints to the pile as they areprepared one after the other.

Another object of the invention is to provide platen operating meansthat is adjustable to accord with different stages in the range ofmovement of the platen, a further object being to provide latching meansfor holding the platen at different elevations corresponding with thedifferent stages of movement of the platen.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will appear in thefollowing description, the invention resides in the novel combinationand arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a front elevational View and Fig. 2 is a sideelevational view of a press embodying my invention; Fig. 3 is a planview'thereof; Fig. 4 is a perspective view in detail of the platen and aportion of the rack to 0 which the platen is attached, and Figs. 5 to 8inclusive, are views similar to Fig. 1. Fig. 5 shows the platen restingupon a low pile of mounted photographs. Fig. 6 showsthe platen in theelevated position in which it would be latched above a pile ofphotographs such as that shown in Fig.

5; Fig. 7 shows the platen resting upon a relatively tall pile ofphotographs and Fig. 8 shows the platen in the position in which itwould be latched above a pile such as that shown in Fig. 7. Referring tothe drawings, it will be seen that the illustrated form of my improvedpress is shown as being mounted upon the top H] of a table l l, but itwill be understood that said device may be mounted upon any suitablesupporting structure. The press includes a standard a, consisting of abase flange l2 and upright face and web flanges I3 and Hi, the baseflange l2 having holes therein to receive screws l5 for anchoring saidstandard to the supporting structure. In-

0 cluded as a part of the standard a is a boss l6 which projectsoutwardly from the upper end of the face flange I3. Formed integrallywith said boss 16 and projecting from one side thereof in parallelismwith said face flange l3 is a hori- 55 zontally disposed bracket memberll carrying an upright guide 18, said guide being U-shaped in horizontalcross section, the open side thereof facing said boss. Formed integrallywith said bracket member ii and boss 16 is a reinforcing flange i9.Slidably guided in the guide I8 is an upright rack bar 20, the toothededge thereof being exposed at the open side of the guide. A headed stud2| mounted in the boss l6, axially thereof, revolubly supports a pinion22 formed with a hub 23, the teeth of said pinion being in mesh with theteeth of the rack 29. An upright spring leaf 24, constituting a latchingpawl, is secured at its lower end to the closed side of the guide 18,said leaf having a head portion 25 turned toward the rack 20 at the topof the guide l3. Cut into the edge of the rack 20, opposite the teeththereof, are vertically spaced notches 26, 21, each having an upper wallforming a shoulder 28 at right angles to said edge and also having aninclined lower wall forming a cam surface 29 (Fig. l).

Pivoted to the rack 23 at its lower end is a platen 30. This platenconsists of an oblong block having upright ears 3| (Fig. 4) cast thereoncentrally thereof. The lower end of the rack 20 is received between theears 35, a pivot pin 32 being disposed in registering bores in said earsand in a bore in the rack, said platen being adapted to tiltlongitudinally on said pin and being supplied with a facing 33 of spongerubber or the like at the lower side thereof.

The pinion 22 is turned in a clockwise direction as seen in Fig. l toraise the platen and is controlled in its reverse rotation to lower saidplaten by means of a hand lever 34. This lever is inserted selectivelyinto spaced radial sockets 35, 36 formed in the hub 23 of said pinion22. These sockets have a definite relationship with respect to thenotches 26, 2'1, in the rack 20 as will be fully understood from thefollowing description of the operation of the device.

In mounting photographs, the operator afflxes the prints, one at a time,to their respective backings and as each one is prepared, it is placedin the press. At the outset, the lever 34, disposed in its socket 35, isgrasped by one hand and, through a downward pull thereon, the platen 3?]is lifted sufiiciently to permit the first photograph to be placed bythe other hand upon the supporting surface In beneath the said platen.With the photograph thus positioned, the platen, under controlmaintained through the lever 34, is allowed to descend to and rest uponsaid photograph. Upon being prepared, the next photograph is placed inthe press on top of the one previously applied thereto, this operationbeing repeated until the particular batch at hand is under treatment oruntil the capacity of the press is reached, the platen, upon theaddition of each photograph being lifted from the pile and loweredthereto through the medium of the lever 34. Said lever, in its socket35, swinging to its lower convenient limit raises the platen only aboutone-half as high as it can be elevated in the use of the device to itsfull capacity. Therefore, if the pile of photographs in the pressreaches the height occupied by the platen as shown in Fig. 6 and thepile is to be further developed, the lever 34 is removed from the socket35 and placed in the socket 383. In thus changing the lever 34 from theone socket to the other, the building up of the pile to the fullcapacity of the press may continue with movement of the lever 34confined approximately within the same convenient limits as at theoutset of the operation. In order that the operator may have the use ofboth hands in attending to the building up or handling of a pile ofphotographs, he may cause the platen 30 to be latched in one of twoelevated positions. Should the pile be low with the lever 36 in socket35, the platen 38 would be latched in the elevated position shown inFig. .6, but should the pile be comparatively high with the lever 34 insocket 36, the platen would be latched in the position shown in Fig. 8.

In latching said platen at either of said elevations, the pawl 24 isflexed against the rack 23 by one hand as the other is used to pull thelever 34 downwardly and thus raise the platen from the pile in thepress. The notch 26 or 27, as the case may be, coming opposite the head25 of the pawl 24, receives said head, whereupon both hands may befreed, the one from the lever 34 and the other from said pawl 24. Uponreleasing the lever 34 and pawl 24, the head 25 of the latter is caughtbeneath the shoulder 28 of the notch with the result that the pawl iscaught in the notch and the platen 38 secured in an elevated positionclear of the pile of photographs. Upon again lowering the platen, thelever 3 is first pulled downwardly a slight distance to lift theshoulder 28 of the notch from the head 25 of the pawl 24, thus allowingsaid pawl to spring back into its inoperative position or causing itsmovement into such position, through the coaction of the cam surface 29with said head 25 should the pawl, fail to free itself. With the pawl24'freed from the rack 26), the weight of the platen 3E! and rack 26tends to turn the pinion 22 and reverse the movement of the lever 34.Controlling such movement of said lever, the operator permits the platento descend to the pile of photographs or to the supporting surface H] ifthe pile has been removed.

The different lever sockets 35, 3t in the pinion 22 provide for theready manipulation of the lever 34 throughout the range of movement ofthe platen 30 and the particular relation of said' sockets with respectto the latching notches 26, 2! in the rack 20 provide for readilylatching the platen at various elevations. These features promote speedin operation with minimum efiort, simplicity, durability and low cost ofmanufacture being additional features which render the device a verydesirable accessory in the mounting of photographs and kindred tasks.

Changes in the specific form of my invention, as herein disclosed, maybe made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from thespirit of my invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protectby Letters Patent is:

l. Latching means for a device of the character described having a frameand a member reversely slidable thereon and tending to move in onedirection, said means including a latching pawl mounted on said frameand a series of abutments on said member, the pawl comprising a bodyhaving a head thereon, said pawl being movable to bring said head intothe path of an adjacent abutment and adapted to prevent the movement ofsaid. member in the direction first mentioned upon the engagement ofsuch abutment with said head, said pawl being self-movable to free saidhead from its engaged abutment and to position thehead clear of all ofsaid abutments upon the movement of said member in a direction opposedto that first mentioned.

2. Latching means for a device of the character described having a frameand an elongated member longitudinally slidable up and down thereon,said latching means including a latching pawl mounted on said frame andan abutment on said member, the pawl comprising a body having a headthereon, said pawlbeing movable to bring the head thereof into the pathof said abutment and adapted to prevent the descent of said member bygravity upon the engagement of said abutment with said head, said pawlbeing-self-movable to free said head from said abutment and position thehead clear of the path of the abutment upon the movement of said memberupwardly.

3. Latching means for a device of the character described having a,frame and an elongated member longitudinally. slidable up and downthereon, said latching means including a latch ing pawl consisting of anupright leaf-spring secured at its lower end to said frame andincluding, further, an abutment on. said member, said pawl being capableof being sprung to bring the upper end of the leaf-spring into the pathof said" abutment and adapted to prevent the descent of said member bygravity uponbeing engaged by said abutment, said pawl beingself-springing to freeits upper end from said abutment and position thesame clear of the path thereof upon the upward movement of said member.

JOSEPH P. ENGSTROM.

